Keenan Pili is a 25-year-old husband and father, a two-time team captain and has played in 34 games in four seasons but he felt like a newcomer last December.
Pili was adjusting to a new team and a new city when he arrived at Tennessee via the transfer portal from BYU ahead of spring practices. Despite being a seasoned linebacker in a room riddled with youth, Pili kept quiet.
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He wanted to earn the respect of his new teammates as he transitioned into the system and not rest on his resume.
“You want to work from the bottom,” Pili said. “You want to get to know guys and be able to gain their respect. I want to focus on that and be there for the team aspect.”
As Tennessee begins fall camp, Pili feels less like the new guy and more like the veteran player that wracked up 62 tackles and a sack at BYU a year ago and is now settled into defensive coordinator Tim Banks' scheme.
“The big thing for me was I kind of felt new and I’m starting to not feel new at all anymore,” Pili said. “I think that’s the good part, just being able to grow in the system, grow in the culture.”
WATCH ON VOLREPORT: Tennessee defensive coordinator Tim Banks previews fall camp
Culture was a driving force behind Pili's decision to transfer to Tennessee and his quiet approach in meshing with it over the last eight months has given him the respect that he had hoped to earn when he first arrived on campus.
"(Pili) was a great addition to our team this spring," Banks said. "He's a tremendous young man and a tremendous family man. He's big, athletic, physical. We're super excited about watching him continue to develop during camp. I think all of our team really respects him because of his work ethic.
"He's not really a real vocal person at this point, but I think as he continues to get more comfortable with our team, I think you'll see him get even more vocal."
Pili's path to Knoxville was different than most.
In the age of the transfer portal, life-altering decisions sometimes need to be made quickly and in Pili's case, having a family makes the decision of where to play and develop even more important.
“The portal, that was a crazy period,” Pili said. “I’ve told everybody, it’s like recruiting on steroids. It’s not like high school recruiting. I chose Tennessee, but a week prior, you don’t know where you’re going. It all happens that quick.”
A little bit of familiarity helped.
Pili was a freshman when BYU beat Tennessee in overtime in 2019 and Neyland Stadium made an impression.
“I had a cool experience,” Pili said. “The environment was crazy at the time and I felt like the people were super nice at the hotel and really and that’s all I knew about Tennessee other than it being an SEC school. Now, being able to be here and feel it, it’s been cool.”
Now Pili is expected to lead the Vols' linebacking corps alongside senior and leading tackler Aaron Beasley, who is also having to make an adjustment as a leader as more attention comes his way.
Beasley was among the first players to approach Pili when he joined the program, working with him in the film room and at the practice facility. The two have bonded away from the field, too.
“(Beasley) was the first guy that I connected with,” Pili said. “He’s helped me since the time that I got here. The playbook, on the field, off the field. It’s been huge.”
MORE FROM VOLREPORT: Key takeaways from Tennessee's third practice of fall camp
Pili is as connected with every player on the team now as he was with Beasley early on.
Because of his age, Pili is jokingly referred to as an "old head" by teammates on both sides of the ball, but he knows it's in good fun. If anything, it's an example of how comfortable where he is now and how comfortable the team is with him.
"It was funny because I didn't know (Pili) was married," sophomore linebacker Kalib Perry said. "I remember he brought it up and I was like, 'You're married?' ...We always call him an 'old head.' Even Beasley and all those guys just to try and get at them. It's harmless."
As for his transition to living in East Tennessee, Pili is enjoying that, too.
He and his wife try to visit a new Knoxville eatery every week. They like Southern Grit on Central St. and Ruby Sunshine on Market Square.
Pili has even tried to take in fishing when time permits, though his adjustment on the field seems to be going better.
"I’ve been trying to get into the fishing scene,” Pili said. "I'm on the lower end of success. I haven't figured it out yet."
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